Revenge, Served Warm
by Cke1st
Summary: This story takes our favorite journeyman Harper to the one place on Pern where she never, ever wanted to go again. But Masterharper Robinton wants some new songs taught there. At least he will accompany her on the trip, to help smooth a passage that is sure to be extremely rocky. Rated K-plus; the language is all K.
1. Chapter 1

**Revenge, Served Warm **Chapter 1

_A/N_  
_I wrote this story because Anne didn't write it, and it's a scene I desperately wanted to see. The story takes place during the Ninth Pass, shortly after Robinton moved into Cove Hold. It's rated K-plus; the language is all K._

**o**

Robinton sighed. His beautiful Cove Hold left absolutely nothing to be desired, for a Harper and for a man recovering from a heart attack... and sometimes the peace and quiet left him bored out of his mind. He was under Healer's orders to do absolutely nothing stressful. Most of the time, that meant doing nothing at all. To a man whose trade had repeatedly brought him into contact with more contentious people than any other trade on Pern, doing nothing felt like a prison sentence. Well, today's activity shouldn't cause him any stress, aside from a quick trip _between_. In fact, it would probably reduce the stress of the person he was about to meet with. If he himself enjoyed this assignment as well, then that could only be good for him.

His journeyman answered his bellowed summons with admirable haste. Robinton could still remember the days when he could move that fast, but those days were behind him. "Good morning," he began. "I've got a special assignment for you."

"Where are you sending me, Master?"

The Masterharper stepped over to his wall map of Pern and tapped a spot on the map with his writing stick. The journeyman's face fell.

"There? Again?"

"Yes, there, again. I believe it's time."

"Is there nowhere else you can send me?" the journeyman nearly begged.

Robinton tisk-tisked. "Surely you aren't refusing an official assignment from me, are you?"

"No, Master," the journeyman sighed. "You know I wouldn't do that. But I once swore that I'd never, ever go back there! I'd rather dig coal in the deepest pits of Crom than return there."

"You may get your wish before you're done," the Masterharper said in a mock-threatening tone. "The Masterminer once mentioned to me that his craft is almost completely ignored in the Ballads. I'd like to set that right, and since you're the best person for that job, you'll probably be sent to Crom to get a feel for what the Minercraft is all about, so you can write a proper song about them and what they do. But for now, that little spot on the map is badly in need of learning our new teaching songs. I want you to do the teaching. Every Harper needs to be a teacher, not just a singer." At his journeyman's crestfallen face, he added, "Surely you don't think I'm sending you there all by yourself?"

"You're not?" Robinton saw hope for the first time since the conversation had begun.

"Certainly not! You're going to take copies of the new songs there, teach the children a few of them, teach the resident Harper the rest of them... and I'll be with you every step of the way. I realize that you're going to encounter some resistance, and helping you overcome that resistance won't overtax me at all. In fact, I believe it will lift my spirits and do me good. Now, get your riding gear and your gitar, and be back here in ten minutes, or I _will_ send you alone!" The journeyman turned and ran out the door, almost colliding with the young dragon-rider who was walking into the Hold.

"D'ram of Southern Weyr sends his greetings, Masterharper," the man said.

"I greet him as well," Robinton nodded. He didn't recognize this rider who was barely more than a boy. "And you are...?"

"K'van, sir. Bronze Heth's rider. I was just reassigned here from Benden."

"A bronze. Excellent." Robinton nodded. D'ram was a good man, and he never forgot how to show proper honor to the leaders of Hold and Hall, unlike so many of the other Oldtimers. "I am going to need transportation, for myself and one other. Our task will probably occupy us all day, and perhaps into the evening, so you'll need to stay until we're ready for our return trip. Can you accommodate us?"

"It is Southern Weyr's pleasure to serve the Masterharper," K'van said politely.

"Good. I think I have some riding gear hidden away somewhere. When my journeyman returns, we'll be on our way."

"And where are we bound?" the young bronze rider asked.

Robinton smiled and tapped the map again. "Half-Circle Sea Hold."

**o**

The boats were all out, taking advantage of the good fishing that always occurred the day after Threadfall, so no one was left in the Sea Hold except the women, the young, and the old. Sella was working in the upper clearing, beating the dust out of the rugs from the sleeping halls, trying to stay upwind of the clouds of dust that she was raising. It wasn't pleasant work, but it was still a break from caring for Old Uncle every day. Confound that Menolly, running away and leaving more work for everyone else! If she was dead, Sella thought, she deserved it; and if she had somehow stayed alive, then hopefully she'd found shelter in a Hold with an even older, more cantankerous Uncle than the one she'd deserted.

A shadow passed over her for a moment. She looked up, startled. It was a dragon! A big one, too; probably a bronze. Half-Circle wasn't expecting guests, but they always paid due honor to any dragon-rider who happened to visit. She noticed that the dragon carried two passengers in addition to the rider. Then she dropped her rug and her beating stick and ran inside.

She had two missions: to notify the kitchen that some important guests were here, and to notify Mavi. She ran to the kitchen first, because finding Mavi at this hour could take a while. She burst into the kitchen and accosted the first cook she saw. "We have unexpected guests! Is the klah pot full?"

"Y... y... yes," the cook stammered, "but it may be cold."

"Heat it!" Sella ordered. "Make up some sweet rolls and fishrolls for lunch, with fresh bread, and prepare for a fancy supper as well."

"We have some bubbly pies left over from yesterday," the cook thought out loud. "Would those be good to serve to our guests?"

"If they're still fresh, then yes," Sella snapped. "Otherwise, no! We can only serve the best for these visitors."

"Who are they?" the cook wondered.

"I don't know," Sella said as she turned for the doorway, "but they're arriving on a bronze dragon, so they must be important people." She whirled and wagged a threatening finger. "Only the best for them!" She ran out of the kitchen and began searching the halls for Mavi. It took her fifteen minutes to track her down in the glow storage room, teaching two of the children how to do the work that Menolly used to do.

"Visitors?" Mavi gasped. "On dragonback? We aren't ready! We have nothing prepared! I'll have to get to the kitchen and -"

"I've already been to the kitchen," her daughter reported. "They're preparing the best food they've got for lunch, and they're starting a fancy meal for supper."

"Blessed child!" Mavi almost smiled. "I can always count on you to do the right thing... unlike some daughters I could name! But those cooks can't do a proper job of cooking unless they're supervised. I'll probably be in and out of the kitchen all day. You, go greet our guests. Report to me as soon as you know who they are and what they want."

"Greet them?" Sella was dismayed. "I'm wearing my old work dress, and it's covered with dust from the rugs I was beating. Do I have time to run upstairs and change into something better?"

Mavi looked at her daughter's clothes and shuddered. "If our guests were sailing in, then you'd have time. But if they're on dragonback, then they're probably landing as we speak. Never mind; we'll exchange roles. You, take charge of the kitchen; don't let them take any shortcuts, and don't you be sloppy about anything, either! I'll greet our visitors in the name of Half-Circle Sea Hold." She gathered up her skirts and ran up the stairs, faster than Sella had ever seen her run before.

Mavi reached the upper field just as the huge bronze dragon settled to earth. She saw with shock that Sella had left the old rugs she was beating, lying on the ground in plain sight. Well, there was nothing to be done about it now. She waited until the three men had dismounted, then ran over and made a quick bow. "Welcome to Half-Circle Sea Hold. I am Mavi, wife to Yanus the Holder. We greet you, dragon-rider and honored guests."

"Thank you for your kind greeting," the tallest man nodded as he pulled off his riding gear.

The rider, who was shorter than either of the other two, stepped forward. "I am K'van, bronze Heth's rider. I bear with me Masterharper Robinton, and -"

"The Masterharper!" Mavi blurted out. No Craftmaster had ever visited this little Hold, except for Masterfisher Idarolan, and his visits were infrequent. "I beg your apologies, Masterharper, but we were not expecting anyone of your rank. My husband and most of the menfolk are out fishing, and they won't be back until just before supper, and that's if the winds are fair. We can't offer you much of a welcome."

"Some klah is all we require for now," Robinton said casually. "Perhaps a simple lunch, when the time comes. We'd like to stay until supper and meet Holder Yanus. In the meantime, we have some business with Harper Elgion."

"I'll take you to him," Mavi said. "He's teaching the children their Ballads. We always make sure that everyone here knows their duty to Hold, Hall, and Weyr, and the old songs are the best way to do it."

"They are, indeed," the Masterharper nodded. "Sometimes, the need for a new song occurs, and those new songs take their place beside the old ones. That is why we're here."

"I've always believed that the old songs are the best," Mavi said with as much firmness as she could muster.

Robinton stopped walking. "Every old song was a new song once," he said, softly but with great force. "Some of the most beloved of the Teaching Ballads probably got their start when a Harper in a small Hold got bored and started tuning." Mavi didn't rise to the bait, and they resumed walking. She led the Masterharper, the dragon-rider, and the journeyman (who still kept his flying gear on, so she couldn't see his face) down flights of stone steps to a room that faced the sea. They could hear the children singing long before they reached the doorway.

"They're singing the Riddle Song," Robinton noticed with approval.

"That is an odd choice of songs to teach the chilren," Mavi said hesitantly. "I was told that all the questions in that song have already been answered."

"Yes, indeed they have," the Masterharper agreed, "by Lessa and the Oldtimers. Still, that song has an honored place in Pern's history now, and it's good that the children still learn it, even if its words are no longer a mystery." Mavi held her peace on that issue.

Elgion took one look at the new arrivals and stopped in mid-chord. "Master!" he exclaimed as he rushed over and took both of Robinton's hands. "I haven't seen you in over a Turn! We'd heard that you weren't well. You certainly look well enough now."

"Yes," Robinton nodded. "The Healers may yet save my life, if they don't kill me with boredom first." He turned to the doorway. "K'van, thank you for the ride. We'll probably be staying for supper, so you may do as you wish until then."

"Thank you, Masterharper," K'van said respectfully. "I think Heth will do a little hunting today. I'll grab some rolls from the kitchen and we'll make a day of it. That will occupy both of us."

"That surprises me," Robinton said. "I had heard that the wild beasts on the Southern continent were fatter and tastier to dragons than the Northern creatures."

"They are, Masterharper, they are," the young man nodded. "Heth needs to see how fortunate he is to be in Southern now. A taste of Northern wherry will help him appreciate the good things that are now his for the taking in his new home." He nodded to Robinton, then to Mavi, and left. Mavi left a minute later, once she was sure that the Masterharper didn't need anything else from her.

That was the journeyman's cue to remove "his" riding gear. Elgion was speechless for a moment; he hadn't seen the Harper Hall's new journeyman since she was in Benden Weyr, recovering from running her feet raw while trying to outrun Threadfall. "Menolly! I'd heard that you made Journeyman. Congratulations! I admit I'm surprised to see you back here. Some of the things I learned from your brother..."

"I'm here on Harper business," she said firmly. "This isn't a social call, and the longer I can keep it that way, the happier I'll be."

Robinton leaned conspiratorially toward Elgion. "Tell me, what did the Holder and his wife say when they learned that their errant daughter has become a journeyman Harper?"

Elgion grinned openly. "Do you think I actually told them that? As far as they know, Menolly was eaten by Thread shortly after she ran away. They seem to like it that way. I thought it would be easier for her to make a clean break from this dismal place. I haven't even told Alemi about her."

"Thank you!" Menolly blurted out.

"You were wise," Robinton agreed, "but that situation is about to end. Menolly, you can help teach the children some of your new songs until lunchtime. At lunch, you will have to put in an appearance, and your identity will be a secret no longer."

"I suppose I'll find a way to endure it," she said resignedly. "By the Egg, I've found ways to endure much worse things here!" Then she turned to the children, who were straining their ears to overhear the adults' conversation. "Have any of you ever heard a song about what it's like on the Southern continent?" None of them had, of course, because she'd written that song only a week ago. But they learned it quickly with many smiles, and sang it loudly as Menolly led them and played gitar.

_In the land we call the Southern,_  
_There's a place that's fair and bright,_  
_Where the redfruits grow on bushes_  
_And you sleep out every night,_  
_Where the wherries taste like honey,_  
_Fire-lizards fly and play,_  
_Where you never will freeze_  
_Near the fish-roll trees,_  
_The hot klah springs_  
_Where the harpers all sing_  
_In the land we call the Southern._

The other two Harpers stood back and enjoyed a quick break from their duties as Menolly took over the teaching. Elgion whispered to Robinton, "I can think of a few Holders who would lose their temper if they heard such a silly song being taught to their children."

Robinton smiled and murmured back, "Children should be allowed a few dreams to accompany their learning."

She was four songs in when a tanned man strode into the classroom, stopped in his tracks, and stared at her. A huge smile broke out on his face, matched by her own smile, and they rushed to hug each other (carefully, so they didn't damage her gitar).

"Menolly! You're alive!"

"Alemi! I thought I'd never see you again!"

"I was working in the docking cavern when I heard your voice. After all this time, I still love to hear you sing, even if you have to hide it."

Menolly shook her head. "I don't hide it any longer. The Harper Hall seems to like my tuning -"

"Truthfully, we have none better," Robinton interrupted.

Now Alemi turned on Elgion. "Did you know she was still alive?"

"I had information to that effect," the Harper said blandly, "but nothing firm enough to pass on to this Hold."

"Couldn't you have told her own brother?!" Alemi demanded. "Menolly was one of the few shining lights in this dark place!"

"With respect," Elgion countered, "we're in the middle of teaching the children. Can we talk about this later?"

"We can, and we will," Alemi said firmly. He stood in the other corner and listened to his sister, smiling and tapping time with his foot as she sang, until the lesson was over and lunch time arrived. They knew it was lunch time when Sella appeared at the door to invite them to the table... and then completely lost her voice at the sight of the blue-clad journeyman who was teaching the children of her Hold.

"Oh, hi, Sella," Menolly said offhandedly as she packed her gitar away. "Is it lunch time already?"

Her sister finally found her voice. "Do you know what Yanus is going to _do_ to you when he catches you pretending to be a Harper?"

"She's not pretending," Elgion cut in.

"If she _is_ pretending," Robinton added dryly, "then she's doing an uncommonly good job of it."

"Yes, it is lunch time," Elgion went on, "so, Sella, if you would be so kind as to guide the Masterharper and his journeyman to the dining hall? I have to take charge of the children and dismiss them; I'll catch up with you in a few minutes."

Sella wasn't sure whom to stare at, her sister or the Masterharper. Finally, Menolly took Robinton's arm. "I'm pretty sure I remember the way to the dining hall. I'm sorry to say that they probably won't serve you a Benden wine, though. Yanus says the Tillek vintages are good enough for fisherfolk, and there's no use spending extra money on things that don't matter."

"I think Yanus has a great deal to learn," Robinton said sadly.

"You're telling me?!" Menolly burst out. "He serves _red_ wine with _fish!"_ The Masterharper shuddered from his head to his toes and allowed Menolly to lead him to the dining hall. Sella was left at the doorway to the classroom, still gawking at them.

**o**

_A/N_  
_Menolly's song about the Southern Continent sounds suspiciously like the old song "The Big Rock Candy Mountain."_


	2. Chapter 2

**Revenge, Served Warm **Chapter 2

Mavi was waiting to welcome Half-Circle Sea Hold's visitors to the dining hall for lunch. One of the guests was the Masterharper of Pern, so he would get the best that Half-Circle had to offer. The other guest was an unknown journeyman who hadn't taken off his riding gear until after Mavi had left them in the Hold Harper's care. Whoever he was, he would sit at the head table next to the Masterharper. She greeted Robinton, then got a look at the journeyman's face...

...and stopped. Just stopped, speechless, motionless, stunned to her very core. Her extended hand of greeting fell limply to her side.

Menolly glanced at her, took in the fact that her mother had no reaction at all to seeing her again, and kept walking toward the head table with the Masterharper.

As they took their seats in the places of honor, Robinton turned to her. "That was quite a show that your mother didn't put on. Are you all right?"

"I'd rather have no reaction than an angry, embarrassing scene," Menolly said flatly. "Elgion said they think I'm dead, so I don't mind if they treat me that way." She was looking all around the room, recognizing the familiar faces, smiling and waving to a few of them, pointedly avoiding any more glances in Mavi's direction. They waited until the first course of food was brought out, then began to relax and enjoy the meal. They knew that the menu would mostly consist of fish, more fish, and other fish; but in a Hold where seafood was the greatest portion of their diet, the cooks had learned some tricks to make the same repetitive dishes taste different now and then.

"I must compliment your head cook on how she prepared those spiderclaws," Robinton said. "There's something different about them, something quite good that I've never encountered before."

"That idea is actually Mavi's doing," Menolly told him after swallowing her mouthful of seafood. "She taught the cooks to fry the spiderclaws in packtail fat for a few minutes before baking them. It adds a touch of fish flavor that works well with the spiderclaws' own flavor. It's a trick she learned from a woman in one of the very few traveling trains that ever came here."

"Would you think I am being too harsh," the Masterharper said slowly, "if I said I was amazed that anyone would willingly try anything new and different here?"

"Not at all," Menolly answered with a hint of a smile. "It took her a few years before Yanus would eat them without complaining. Everyone else loved them that way from the beginning, but he thought a spiderclaw should taste like a spiderclaw and nothing else."

Out in the hallway, Sella had finally changed into some nicer-looking clothes. Now she approached Mavi. "There's something you need to know about that visiting journeyman," she began.

"You mean, aside from the fact that she's your runaway sister whom we all thought was dead?" Mavi asked acidly. "When did you find out about her, and why didn't you tell me immediately?"

"I just found out when I came to invite them to lunch!" Sella protested. "This is the first time I've seen you since then. What are we going to do?"

Mavi shook her head. "As long as she stays by the Masterharper's side, there is nothing we can do. But as soon as he leaves, that girl is going to find herself busier than she's ever been in her life! She will make up for lost time, and then she'll _really_ start to work."

"What if she leaves when the Masterharper leaves?" Sella asked.

"Why would he take her with him?" Mavi sounded perplexed. "He's obviously brought her back here because he knows she belongs here. Where else could she stay? Who else would want her? Just be patient, Sella. Your days of turning glows and attending to Old Uncle every day are almost over."

Elgion joined them when the meal was halfway through. None of the fisherfolk would dare importune the Masterharper, and the girl beside him was an unknown quantity, but they all knew their Hold's own Harper and wouldn't hesitate to ask him for entertainment. As the dishes were being cleared away, someone called out, "A song! A song!" Others took up the call.

Elgion stood and waited for the calls to die down. "Yes, a song would be a fine idea after such a good meal. But I'm sure you're all sick to death of my singing. Let's hear a different voice, shall we?" He gestured to Menolly. That brought instant silence to the room; they all had had a chance to recognize her by now. Elgion handed her his gitar and stepped back.

"What shall I do?" she whispered to Robinton.

"You're a Harper," Robinton smiled. "Give them a song! That's what Harpers do."

"All right." She stood, a bit shakily, and made sure the gitar was in tune. "This is a song about losing your way at sea... which is something that no one in this Hold knows anything about, I'm sure!" That got a few good-natured chuckles and guffaws. There wasn't a man in the Sea Hold who hadn't lost his bearings and had to navigate by sun and stars at least once, and there wasn't a woman who hadn't waited up late for an overdue husband, brother, or son. She struck a bouncing melody and began to sing.

_Caps of white upon the sea._  
_Clouds of white, the sails to see._  
_Wind has taken us away; no land in sight._

_Wooden hull is making speed._  
_Ocean gives us all we need._  
_Maybe we are lost but we'll get home all right._

Robinton smiled. He knew that she was really singing about the time that the two of them had gone sailing and gotten lost, due to storm and current, and wound up following the Southern coastline for days. Everyone else in the room was smiling and tapping their toes to the melody; she was speaking the language of Sea Holders. Menolly continued:

_Are we in a hurry now?_  
_Soon enough, we'll find out how_  
_Stars and sun can guide us home by night and day._

_Sun will turn us brown and bake.  
__Shipfish playing in our wake._  
_When we're late for home, what will the others say?_

The song had five sets of verses and painted a romanticized but accurate picture of a ship and crew who had lost their way at sea. Nearly everyone in the dining hall enjoyed it immensely. The exceptions were Mavi and Sella, who suspected that this was one of Menolly's tunes, simply because they'd never heard it before, which meant it was wrong. They sat in miserable discomfort, knowing that Yanus would put a quick stop to their wayward daughter's tuning, but he wouldn't be here for several more hours at best.

When Menolly was done, the Holders applauded. That meant that she had to give them another song. This time, she gestured to a drum that was hanging on the wall nearby. Elgion took it and accompanied her as she sang a well-known song about how the Weyrs protected the Holders. That was a crowd-pleaser. Then she sang "Don't Leave Me Alone," and this caused quite a stir in the dining hall. Everyone had heard Brekke's scream in their dreams that awful night, some more intensely than others, but no one had ever explained to the Sea Holders what it meant. Menolly's song had been forwarded to Elgion so he could explain it, but Yanus had forbidden him to play the song because it was new and it taught nothing productive. Had Yanus known that the forbidden song was Menolly's workmanship, he would have been even more adamant! Now, she had to take a few minutes and describe the events that led to her writing that song.

"Only a Benden dragon would have tried something that brave," was the consensus of opinion. "Brekke was brave, too. Poor thing."

Finally, Mavi stood up. "I hate to end this little concert," she said tartly, "but most of you have work that you need to do. If Yanus gets home and finds you all sitting around idle, listening to tunes instead of working... well, you can guess what will happen." Everyone except the Harpers scattered to their daily tasks. Sella reluctantly stayed after the others had left the room.

"Are the Harpers staying for supper?" she asked Elgion.

"Why don't you ask them?" he replied with a twinkle in his eye. "I'm sure they won't bite you if you talk to them."

Sella nervously turned to the Masterharper, pretending that Menolly didn't exist. "Do you intend to honor us by staying for supper?"

"We do intend to so honor you," Robinton replied with a nod. "We might even honor you with another impromptu concert after the meal."

Visions of Yanus dragging Menolly out of the dining hall and giving her a well-deserved beating filled Sella's mind. "Oh! Maybe you should... I mean... we'd be honored, Masterharper." She carefully avoided looking at Menolly through the entire conversation, until she finally turned and left.

Menolly watched her go. "Do you think they liked my songs, Masterharper?"

"Do you doubt your own eyes and ears, child?" Robinton chided her. "They were smiling, they were tapping their toes, they were singing along on the choruses once they'd heard them once or twice... I have told you, in no uncertain terms, that you have a rare gift of music, and you have done nothing to change my mind. Yes, even these salt-encrusted cave dwellers know a good song when they hear one, and they just heard several!"

"A little reassurance can go a long way when one is so accustomed to being called 'useless,' Master," Elgion said. He reclaimed his gitar from Menolly. "For some reason, my instruments always sound better when someone else plays them."

"I've noticed that about my own instruments, too," she nodded. "I wonder why that's so?" They fell to discussing instruments and musical tones, while Robinton listened and took mental notes about their understanding of how sounds are produced.

Meanwhile, Mavi had resumed teaching some of the taller children how to handle the glows. Half an hour later, she was interrupted by Sella's voice from the top of the stairs above her. "Sails, Mavi! The fleet is coming in!"

"It's about time," Mavi muttered. "Yanus will put a quick stop to this 'girl harper' nonsense, and the sooner, the better! Some of the other children might get some crazy ideas from her, and there will be no end to the mischief she could cause."

It took hours for the fishing fleet to move from spots on the horizon to boats riding low as they entered the docking cavern. Yanus was in a better mood than usual (which was not the same as a good mood); the fish were running well and his fleet had come home full. That meant plenty of scaling, gutting, and drying for the women and children tomorrow. It was unusual, but very convenient, for Mavi to meet him dockside. He could instruct her in tomorrow's work load more easily that way.

But Mavi's news took the wind right out of his sails. "Yanus, Menolly's back! She's acting like she's some kind of Harper, and she's got the entire Hold cheering for her! Even Elgion is under her spell. You've got to do something."

"Menolly is back?" Her news was having trouble penetrating his mind, which was set on fish a few moments ago. "How did she survive Threadfall all by herself?"

"No one seems to know," Mavi answered, wringing her hands, "but that's the least of our worries! She's playing, and singing, and I think she's singing songs of her own devising. A few more hours of her tuning, and half the girls in the Hold will want to sing and play instruments too!"

"No, they won't," Yanus said grimly. "Not if I have anything to say about it! And I have plenty to say. Where is she?"

"She's in the children's classroom with Elgion, talking about some new teaching songs that she supposedly wrote."

"Stand aside." Yanus swung stiffly from the gunwale to the stone dock. "By the time I'm done with her, no one will ever want to follow in her footsteps again!" He stormed up the stone stairs and strode down the corridors to the children's classroom. Sure enough, there was his runaway daughter, dressed all in blue, talking to Harper Elgion as though she was his equal.

"Harper, you will leave us now," he growled.

"Holder Yanus, there are some things you need to -"

"I said, _leave us!"_ Yanus ordered. "Unless there is something wrong with your ears, in which case I shall have to ask for a new Harper!" Elgion gave him a barely-respectful nod, flashed a comforting smile at Menolly, and edged out of the classroom. His soft-soled boots made little noise as he dashed for the upper levels; Yanus didn't notice.

Menolly went pale. She was cornered, and Yanus was showing the same cold-blooded rage he'd shown on the day he beat her back raw. He said two words. "Explain yourself."

She took a deep breath. "Coming back here was the last thing I wanted to do, but I was ordered to come here by -"

"Coming back here was the worst mistake you ever made!" Yanus thundered. "Even worse than leaving in the first place. But it's time to set matters right." He reached to grab her shoulder; she reflexively lifted her hand to ward him off.

Yanus' eyes blazed. "How dare you raise your hand against me, girl!" He grabbed Menolly's left wrist, and twisted hard enough that she went down to her knees, gasping with pain. He released her long enough to pull off his belt. "Now face away from me and pull up your tunic. I didn't lay enough stripes on you the first time. This time, you'll learn your lesson, make no mistake."

That was his last coherent thought for the next few minutes. With a frantic flutter of tiny wings and equally tiny squeals of rage, what seemed like dozens of miniature dragons suddenly filled the room. Now Yanus was the one who was trapped. Chittering and screeching, the nine fire lizards flew in angry circles around him and made repeated dives at his face, scratching him over and over again with their claws until he looked like he had dragged a live spiderclaw across his cheeks. When he flailed at them with his belt, they ducked _between_ for a moment, then popped out and resumed tormenting him. The two Aunties, in particular, made a project out of hovering near his face, flapping and shrieking at him, then dodging his blows and lacing his forehead again and again.

Menolly was torn. She didn't want her fire lizards to hurt anyone, but she couldn't fault them for wanting to protect her, and in this situation, she urgently needed protecting. She knew that her fair was responding to her own fear, and it would be useless to try to calm them while she was still afraid. She focused on Yanus, frantically ducking and trying to protect himself from creatures a fraction of his size, and she managed to stop seeing him as a mortal threat.

At last, she called Beauty to her. "Make the other ones behave!" she demanded. The gold lizard stared at her, her whirling red eyes uncomprehending. "Tell them to stop hurting the man!" she urged. After four more such entreaties, Beauty finally called the fair to order. Rocky and Diver took up guarding positions, one on each of Menolly's shoulders, while Beauty perched on top of her head, still angrily scolding the man who had hurt their favorite human. The others perched on shelves around the room, calling off their attack but unwilling to hold their peace. The noise in the closed room was deafening, but it slowly subsided.

"You're going to pay for that, girl," Yanus snarled as he felt the blood trickling down his face. "I don't know what those things are, or how you called them, but..."

From just behind him, he heard a man clear his throat. Irritated, he said without looking, "Harper, I told you to leave us!"

"I am not in the habit of taking orders from minor Holders," Robinton answered in a voice as cold as death.

Yanus turned and stared at the man, who was nearly a head taller than he was. "I do not believe we've met. You may introduce yourself later, sir. For now, I require a few minutes' privacy with my daughter. This is Hold business."

"It pleases me to introduce myself now," Robinton said, taking a step toward Yanus to accentuate the height difference between them. "I am Robinton, Masterharper of Pern, I am here on Harper business, and your attempt to order me around is as absurd as it is out of line. But that is the least of my worries. That girl you are abusing is a journeyman Harper, and I _demand_ to know the reason why you are mistreating her."

"Masterharper?" Mavi hadn't mentioned an illustrious guest, and she certainly hadn't mentioned any guests with fire in their eyes. The rest of the Harper's words didn't register.

"Yes, that is what I said! I know there is nothing wrong with _your_ ears, Holder. I am told that you instantly knew the difference between a Teaching song and one of Menolly's songs, and that you brutally punished her for playing a few notes of her own song."

"She had no business tuning in front of the children," Yanus said stubbornly.

"Well, then!" Robinton suddenly acted quite affable. "If it's Menolly's tuning that bothers you so much, then that can be fixed easily! Tell me, what do you think of _this_ little song?" He began singing, unaccompanied, the melody that Menolly had written for her song of being lost at sea. His voice took on a happy, almost mocking tone. But the words he sang were quite different from hers.

_Holder took her by the arm,_  
_Beat her hard and caused her harm._  
_He had made up rules she couldn't live up to._

_She had talent fine and rare._  
_Holder showed he didn't care,_  
_Raising bruises that were black and Harper blue._

Yanus slowly realized that the Masterharper was singing about him. He stared in silence. Robinton stopped and glared down at him.

"Do you like those words, Holder Yanus? That's the first verse; there are four more verses very much like it. Menolly wrote the melody, so it's catchy, and everyone will love to sing it. The words, on the other hand, are my own work. Until this moment, even Menolly didn't know about those words... but if you displease me any further, then I promise you, Holder Yanus, that every person on Pern will know about those words, and about the heartless brute that you are, punishing the finest musical talent on Pern for the crime of being musical!"

Menolly held her breath. She had never seen the Masterharper so angry before. If the stress of this encounter triggered his failing heart...

Yanus looked away. He knew that the Harpers had musically mocked other Holders, even the powerful Lord Holders, if they felt themselves wronged. Now the leader of their Craft was taking Menolly's side for some reason. He had nothing whatsoever he could use against this Masterharper. He tried to think of something, anything that could extricate him from this mess of his own making. What if the members of his own Sea Hold took up that mocking song? At last, his shoulders slumped. "What do you want from me, Harper?"

Robinton counted on his fingers. "I want your solemn promise that you and your people will do nothing to harm Menolly, or her fire lizards, from this day forward. I want you to stop resisting Harper Elgion's attempts to bring this backwards Sea Hold into the time of the Ninth Pass. And, when new songs are delivered to Elgion with Menolly's name on them, I want you to give her full credit in front of everyone."

That last demand was more than Yanus could stomach. "A girl, treated like a real Harper? You ask too much."

"I... ask... too... much?" Robinton's voice was savagely laced with scorn. "Would you rather I bring you up on charges before Lord Vincet for physically assaulting my journeyman? Would you rather see all the Crafts withdraw their workers from this benighted Hold and let you flounder onward without Harper or Healer, or Smith or Tanner, and boycotted by the rest of the Fishers as well? Or perhaps you'd rather see this Sea Hold protected by the Oldtimers from Ista, instead of by Benden Weyr? I can arrange any of those things, or all of them, and probably a few other things that have not yet occurred to me. You have _no idea_ how much I'm capable of asking, Holder Yanus. Now, will you agree to my terms? Or would you rather hear the people from coast to coast singing about the kind of man you really are?"

Yanus stared at the floor and nodded. "I have no choice," he muttered sullenly.

Robinton nodded curtly, satisfied. He paid the Holder no further attention, but stepped past him to Menolly, who was still kneeling on the floor, cradling her left wrist. "Are you all right?" he asked her.

"I don't know if I can play this evening," she said weakly. "My wrist..."

The Masterharper quickly felt along her forearm, watching her face for any reaction. "Nothing is broken. You'll make a full recovery in a few days. For tonight, you'll have to play the drum one-handed. But I must insist that you play something tonight, and sing as well. You are _not_ going to let this place take your music away again!" He helped her to her feet and led her out of the room, oblivious to the shocked, bleeding Holder. The other fire lizards followed them out, ducking under the doorway as they flew. Rocky and Beauty turned on Menolly's shoulder and head so they were riding backwards, and offered some angry parting chitters at Yanus.

As they left, Alemi came running in; Elgion had warned him about the impending crisis as soon as he'd warned Robinton. Menolly's brother glanced at her, holding her wrist and wincing as the Masterharper guided her away from the classroom, guarded by a flock of fire lizards on all sides. Then he looked into the classroom, where his father was trying to wipe away multiple trickles of blood from his cheeks and forehead.

"Well, boy?" Yanus demanded. "You can see that I need help! Are you going to just stand there?"

Alemi looked at him for another moment, mutely threw a clean handkerchief in his direction, then turned away and followed Menolly, to make sure she was all right.

At supper that night, the atmosphere was strained. Everyone could see and pick up on Yanus' unusually sour mood, but no one could fathom why, aside from all the unexplained scratches on his face. They had had a fine fishing run, they had important visitors, they were eating the best food that the Sea Hold could provide... shouldn't this be a happy time? The three Harpers certainly did their best to liven up the mood in the dining hall. But Yanus just stared at his plate, Mavi stared at the doorway, and Sella found repeated excuses to run to the kitchen so she didn't have to look at her sister at all.

At last, the meal was done. It was time for the Harpers to do what Harpers did best: entertain. Elgion started with a pair of popular ballads, then allowed the Masterharper to sing a song.

"And now, it's Journeyman Menolly's turn," Robinton said jovially. "She has written a song about sailing that you seafaring men need to hear."

"Master, I sang that one this afternoon!" she whispered urgently.

"Sing it again," he smiled, but his tone made it clear that this was not a suggestion. So she set a rhythm with her drum, Robinton played gitar while Elgion added a counterpoint on his pipes, and she sang the Lost at Sea song.

Yanus' growing frustration was just one step away from rage. Menolly was _tuning,_ right there in front of them all, and he couldn't stop her! He glared at her, trying to threaten her with an angry gaze, but she was wrapped up in her music and didn't even notice him. He glared at Robinton, who answered by mouthing the altered lyrics that would become public knowledge if Yanus stepped out of line again. He glared at each of his sailors in turn, mentally willing them to stop enjoying the music. But the sailors were loving it; they knew almost no songs about sailing, aside from the chanteys that helped them to do their work, and Menolly had written a very catchy one. When she finished, the cheers and clapping were so loud and insistent that she felt obligated to start it again. The sailors and their wives sang along this time. They couldn't help themselves.

Robinton smiled. Menolly had completed her conquest of Half-Circle Sea Hold.

As the drudges began to clean up the room afterward, Robinton pulled Menolly aside. "How does your wrist feel?"

"It's feeling better already," she told him. "What about you, Master? Did you overexert yourself when you were dealing with Yanus?"

Robinton laughed. "Today's little activity actually made me feel better. Too much of nothing can sap a man's life as badly as too much effort. You don't know the strength of a ship until it faces a storm, and you don't know the strength of a man until he faces some opposition. I haven't been tested in a while. It was time."

"Master! You're starting to talk like a sailor!" she beamed for a moment, then turned serious. "Still, you weren't supposed to be up and about all day like this. It's still daylight in Fort, which is where the Healer Hall is. I'd feel better if you -"

"If you say _one word_ about today within earshot of a Healer," he warned her firmly, "then I'll... I'll send you to Bitra! For a year! No, two years!"

"All right! All right! I won't tell a soul!" Menolly made a great show of backing off and acting cowed. He knew that she wasn't a bit intimidated, though. He'd have to keep an eye on her. But speaking of being intimidated...

"Did I let Yanus off too easily?" the Masterharper asked her. "After all that he's done to you, what would you have me do to him?"

Menolly thought for a moment. "He wanted to punish me for being who I am. Should we punish him for being who he is? That doesn't sound right."

Robinton shook his head. " 'Who he is' would rate a good beating if there was any justice to be found here."

Now Menolly shook her own head. "Master, if you please, this Hold has seen enough good beatings already. Besides, my fire lizards already gave him their version of a beating, and unlike what he did to me, _his_ marks will be plainly visible to everyone for days. I never wanted to come here, and now, all I want to do is leave. Let Yanus stay here in this dismal little place, doing dismal little things, while we lead the rest of Pern into the sunshine. Isn't that punishment enough?"

"If that's what you think is best," the Masterharper replied, "then I'll leave the decision to you. Ahh, K'van, welcome back! You're just in time; we're preparing to leave. I trust you had a pleasant day?"

K'van smiled as he munched a fishroll he'd snared from the kitchen. "Heth and I got to spend the whole day together, with nothing to do except eat, rest, and talk to each other. I don't get many days like that. Yes, we had a very pleasant day, we're both quite relaxed, and we can return you to Cove Hold as soon as you say you're ready." They were soon gone, leaving Half-Circle Sea Hold to return to its usual rhythm of life.

As they circled in for a landing at Cove Hold, Menolly turned back to Robinton. "How many times will you have to call me a journeyman before it registers with Yanus and Mavi?"

"It will never register with those two," Robinton said with a slow shake of his head. "Their minds can't accept the truth, and so my words reach their ears and go no further."

The next morning, a heavy rain kept the Half-Circle fishing fleet tied up at the docks. Yanus took the opportunity to inspect each boat for leaks and worn lines, then stomped back upstairs, looking for something useful to do. Mavi met him there.

"I have to admit, I'm surprised that the Masterharper took Menolly with him when he left," she said sourly. "I can't imagine why he wants her around."

" 'Good riddance to bad rubbish' is all I can say," Yanus said with a dismissive gesture. "Girl harpers! Leading the singing! And writing tunes! Our Hold would be disgraced forever if she stayed. At least we were rid of her before she did any lasting harm to the way we live here."

Then, from down the hall, they heard Elgion leading the children as they enthusiastically learned a new song.

_Caps of white upon the sea.  
__Clouds of white, the sails to see._  
_Wind has taken us away; no land in sight._

Mavi's mouth fell open. "No! Not _that_ again!"

Yanus hid his face in his hands (carefully, for his scratches still hurt) and shook his head. Was there no escaping that girl's influence? This was going to be a very, _very_ long morning.

_The End_

**o**

_A/N_  
_This story burst from my head to my fingers while I was trying to gather ideas for a completely different story. The whole thing was done in less than 24 hours. That happens to me a lot; "the boys in the back room" of my head hijack my thinking and give me no rest until I've finished writing "their" ideas. Not that I'm complaining, mind you; as I said in my introductory note, I desperately wanted to see this scene take place, and since Anne didn't write it, then I had to do it. I hope you liked it._

_Menolly's "Lost at Sea" song isn't set to any particular melody. I toyed with the idea of throwing a bit of humor into the big final scene, but I left it out because it would have detracted from the impact of the story's climax. Menolly was playing the drum after supper with her one good hand, so the key line was going to read, "Robinton smiled. Menolly had completed her conquest of Half-Circle Sea Hold... single-handed."_


End file.
